Lady Love at Melrose Place
by buffyfaith19
Summary: Summary: This is going to be a Femslash version of the new Melrose Place TV show. The rest of the summary is inside.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Lady Love at Melrose Place.**

**Show: Melrose Place(2009)**

**Pairing: Ella/Riley and others.**

**Rating. M**

**Summary: This is going to be a Femslash version of Melrose Place. I started writing it after the first episode and waited until episode 2 had aired before I posted anything just in case there were any character development that I could use. Basically this story is not going to follow the TV shows storyline. I feel that if it's going to be a femslash story then it's pretty much going to go in a different direction anyway. So, I will use the first two episodes as a starting point, but after that this will be a completely different story. A working knowledge of the original Melrose Place will help with the story but it's not a necessity, however I will be bringing in a few of the original characters as the story dictates. I won't be dealing the murder investigation; I think that should be something the show takes care of. Once the killer is revealed I will make a decision on whether to use that information in my story or not. I have about 7 very long chapters written already and hope to do at least 13, but feedback will decide if the number grows or not. ******

**Disclaimer**: **I own nothing. The characters belong to the CW, Darren Star, CBS Paramount Network Television.**

**Chapter 1**

Ella waited for Jonah to go back outside before she slipped back into his apartment, closing the door behind her as she walked slowly towards Riley, "We need to talk."

"Not now Ella." Riley said, turning away from the pretty blonde so she could take a long sip of vodka straight up.

Grabbing the glass from Riley, "This is no time to get drunk."

"Must you be such a bitch all the time?"

"Yes, I must, but you know I'm right." Ella said with a slight smile, slowly stepping forward and sliding her arm around Riley's waist, "If Jonah finds out what we did with Sydney we are going to be the prime suspects."

Riley pushed Ella away, "What do you care, you already have your alibi locked up. You always could think five steps ahead of everyone else."

"That's not going to matter one bit if someone can place David here the night Sydney was killed. I know he didn't do it so I didn't have much of a choice."

"I agree, but someone killed her and sooner or later they are going to find out about us."

"Why are you so worried about that? I thought you said you were going to say no to his marriage proposal?" Ella asked, her annoyance clearly visible in her tone.

"He just made it hard." Riley said with a guilty sigh, "I should want to marry him. Instead I'm screwing his best friend and now I'm a murder suspect. Could life get any worse?"

Once again Ella moved in close to Riley, leaning in and kissing Riley's soft delicious neck, "If you'd let me help I can make you feel a whole lot better right now."

"Sex isn't going to make this go away." Riley snapped, "Why can't things be simple again?"

"They will be, but we need to decide what we are going to say to the police if they ask about our connection to Sydney."

"Well Ella, as usual it wasn't my idea to get back at her. God knows why I let you talk me into to such a stupid idea."

"Because you love me." Ella said with a big smile, "Come on, you know I love you and I'll figure out a way to get us out of this mess."

"Ever since you kissed me my life has been turned upside down."

Ella shook her head and put her finger over Riley's lips, "No, even since we kissed your life has been amazing. You told me that. You said you've never felt so alive, you've never felt so in love and that's real. Don't let Sydney's death ruin what we have."

"What do we have Ella?" Riley asked with an exasperated sigh, "I was happy with Jonah and you are still his best friend. Now tell me how we can possibly live happily ever after when Jonah is going to be devastated when he finds out about us. God, I can't do this to him. I can't."

"Shh." Ella whispered into Riley's ear, "You know I don't want to hurt him. He's like the perfect example of what a guy should be like, well except for his video game habit and his horribly memory and surprising lack of confidence, but I know he loves you and I hate that I'm going to ruin is life, but I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I have never felt that way about anyone before and I never thought I ever would. We have to tell him."

Jonah opened the door causing the two women to pull apart from each other, "Are you two coming outside? The police want to talk to everyone. I'm sure it's just a formality though."

Riley glanced over at Ella and then ran towards Jonah and put her arms around him, "I guess I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

Ella followed, gritting her teeth at the sight of Riley draped all over Jonah, even though she used to be happy for them.

David pulled Ella away from Riley and Jonah and pulled her back inside Jonah's apartment, "I think our alibi is about to come crashing down on us. One of the neighbors is giving me this strange look. I swear she saw me last night. If she tells the police then I'm back to being the prime suspect and you're going to be right there with me since you gave me the alibi. What should we do?"

"Calm down. What woman? Show me." Ella said calmly, leading David back outside. "Point her out."

David looked around and finally spotted the woman waiting in line to talk to the police, "Okay over there, the brunette with the long curls."

"Oh, that's Kelly. I like her. Let me have a talk with her."

"What are you going to do? She's married."

"And your point is?" Ella asked with a shrug.

"You can't just seduce everyone. I have a better chance than you do."

"If you had Jonah's awkward charm then maybe, but you're still a bit wet behind ears when it comes to such things. If by chance she isn't into your boyish looks, that's pretty much the end of it, but hey, if you want to give it a shot, go for it."

"You sure don't give me much credit." David said, even more determined to prove himself.

"Show me I'm wrong." Ella said, stepping to the side, "Go talk her out of her clothes, because I'm guessing that's what you'll need to do to keep her mouth shut."

"I think it's time you saw that there's a bit more to me than just meets the eye. I know how to charm the ladies."

Ella smiled, "I'm ready to take notes. Go for it big guy."

David brushed back his air, checked his breath and began walking towards the woman. He stopped as he got close and began walking even slower, doing his best to act nonchalant. As he got up close to her, he smiled, looked into her eyes and held out his hand, "Kelly isn't it?"

"Yes, who are you?" Kelly said, barely acknowledging him at all.

"Did you say who am I? You don't recognize me?"

Kelly took another look at David, but shook her head, "No, are you the pool boy?"

David tried to ignore the pool boy comment, "Um no, but I was friends with Sydney and this is a real tragedy. Did you know her well?"

"No, I'm just here to talk to the police about that stupid dog in the apartment complex next to ours. It does nothing but bark all night long. I'm surprised Sydney put it up with it, because she usually didn't put up with crap like that."

"That's very true, she was a very good landlord. Anyway, thank you for your time." David said politely and then rushed back over to Ella with a big smile on his face, "Well you don't have to seduce her after all."

"Oh, well, that's a bit sad, but I guess I'll live. I guess you're safe for another day then."

"Have you talked to Riley about the whole Sydney fiasco? I don't trust her to keep her mouth shut."

"I should never have told you about that, but Riley is fine. She is not going to say anything." Ella said, sounding anything but convincing, "They might not even find out. Just because Sydney said she taped us doesn't mean she did. The woman is known for her lies as much as anything."

"Do you want to risk everything on that belief?" David asked, puzzled by Ella's strangely calm attitude, "She was also very meticulous, especially when it came to you. If she thought she could use that tape to squash you a little more, she would."

"But she can't can she?" Ella asked with a confident smile, "Not just because she's dead, but because that tape would do as much damage to her as it would to us. She did things on that tape that are illegal in most every state."

"Then maybe you should be looking into getting it back before the police find it and someone else gets a hold of it. Do you want that tape getting in the hands of your boss?"

"Like he'd care."

"I don't mean so he can get off on it, I mean because he might fire you on the spot."

"Why, sex isn't illegal. If it was I'd be in prison for a very long time." Ella said with a cute grin, "Hmm, prison, I always had a fantasy about prison."

"Ella, snap out of it." David said, snapping his fingers in front of her face, "Do you not take anything seriously?"

"Yes, death and taxes and I've paid my taxes and I'm not dead, so if that's all, I need to get back to work. You should to."

David just smiled as Ella flipped her sunglasses down and marched out of the complex.

Jonah walked Riley back to their apartment, staring at his girlfriend with a confused look on his face, "What just happened there? You lied to the police."

"What? I did not." Riley said, totally caught off guard by Jonah's comment.

"He asked how well you knew Sydney and you said you only knew her as your landlord. Why would you say that?" Jonah asked before continuing on, "She was at all our parties, she invited us to her parties. She may not like Ella now, but before their falling out those two were very close and you were close to both of them."

"It's not a big deal. I was nervous and I wasn't thinking straight. Do you think I killed her or something?"

"No, of course not, but I don't understand why you said that. It looks like you're hiding something. Are you?"

"Would you just leave me alone." Riley yelled, glaring at Jonah like he was the enemy, "I did not kill her and I don't appreciate the third degree. Now I'm going to lie down, I have a headache."

** Ella's Office**.

Ella sat in her big comfy chair, her feet up on her desk holding a damp cloth on her forehead. Normally she could handle the heat, but heat and stress were never a good combination for her. Just as she was getting comfortable and feeling here body temperature get back to normal the door to her office flew open.

Ella's personal assistant rushed in behind the woman, looking horrified, "I'm so sorry Miss Simms. I tried to stop her, but she just pushed her way in."

"That's alright Casey. I'll handle things from here. But, no more unexpected visitors please."

"Yes Miss Simms." Casey said with a nod and smile, happily closing the doors behind her as she left.

"Well, I didn't expect to see you here." Ella said as she walked towards the woman, "I'm so sorry about Sydney."

Jane hugged Ella warmly, "Thank you. I still can't believe she's gone, murdered no less. That's just so crazy. I know she wasn't a saint, but I never dreamed it would come to this."

"I'm sure the police will find who did this." Ella pulled away from the hug and got down to business, "So what brings you here really? We haven't talked in almost a year, but you do look beautiful as always.

"Save the sweet talk Ella, I'm not here for fun and games." Jane brushed past Ella and sat down across from her desk, "I got a package in the mail the other day and I took a few days to think over all my options before I finally made a decision. Your reaction makes me think that you're not responsible, but I need to know for sure."

Ella sat back down, "I thought we left things on good terms, so I'm stunned by your rather dramatic entrance."

"Ella you told me you used to tape your sexual encounters, that's why I thought you must've done this."

"Done what? I have no idea what you're talking about?"

Jane tossed a DVD onto Ella's desk, "This is what I'm talking about."

Ella grabbed it, put it into her computer and sat back and watched.

The tape opened with a shot of an outdoor swimming pool and soon panned to the left where Ella is seen kissing Jane passionately. Moments later their clothes begin to fly off and they happily walk towards two large towels waiting for them on the perfectly cut grass above the pool.

Ella FF'd through the very long sex until she came to the end of it. That's where some writing appears. "Jane, this is a very erotic tape and I loved it a lot, but I wonder if your husband would find it as hot. I really don't think your husband deserves to see Ella naked like this, although he may have already, since she is a slut, but the point is, I need money or you can look forward to seeing your naked body posted on every website in the world for years and years. I will contact you with the more details in the future. Thanks for the show."

"I resent being a called a slut by whoever that is." Ella growled and then refocused on Jane, "Anyway, why would I blackmail you when I'm on the tape to?"

"Because you don't care who sees you naked, you parade around naked in your apartment all the time." Jane said in a huff, "If not you then who? This was taken at my home. You had access to it."

"I haven't seen you in three years. As you can tell I'm doing just fine." Ella motioned around her lavishly furnished office, "I have money. I don't need your money. I did not do this so I don't see how it's my problem."

Jane shot her ex lover with a disapproving stare, "That's the Ella I remember. You never did care about anyone but yourself."

"What do you want from me?" Ella questioned loudly, "I'm not a PI, I can't just snap my fingers and tell you who did it, but chances are it's someone close to you, it usually is."

"My friends would not do this to me. I have a family now. I can't have this getting out." Jane said, growing more frantic with every word, "I don't care if I have to pay them, I want to make sure there are no other copies. You must have some connections. You can't want this online either."

"I admit that now is not a good time for a tape like this to surface, but this happened three years ago, so it's not like I cheated on anyone."

"Like that ever stopped you before." Jane shot back before catching the gist of Ella's comment, "Wait a minute, don't tell me you've actually met someone you care about?"

"That kind of sarcasm is not going to get you any help."

Jane smiled a guilty smile and continued, "Okay, but have you met someone?"

"Maybe, but let's stick to the problem at hand." Ella said, deftly avoiding Jane's question again, "If I'm going to help you I'm going to need a list of your friends. All of them, not just the ones you don't trust, because I bet anything it's someone you'd never expect. I'm going to need some cash as well because I may have to pay for information."

"Just send me a bill. I'll get you a list by tonight." Jane sat back in her chair, looking Ella over again, remembering just what it was like to be with her, "I'm a little jealous that you finally met someone special. At one point I thought I might be the one."

"No you didn't." Ella said with a laugh, "You would never give up your perfect little life anymore than I would back then. What we had was a very long fling that we both loved. It only worked because we just wanted the sex."

"I never thought you'd give that up. So who is the lucky girl?"

"I'm the lucky one. She's amazing, but that's all I'm going to say about it." Ella had to keep herself from going on about Riley, but knew it had to be that way, for now, "I'll look into this but I can't promise you anything."

"I want you to fix this."

"I'm not your employee so you better stop treating me like one."

"I'm sorry. It's habit." Jane said in an apologetic tone, "I appreciate you doing this more than you'll ever know. I don't have any friends I trust enough to talk to about this, so I will do anything you ask and I will answer any questions you have. I just want this over."

Ella got up from her desk and took Jane by the hand and led her towards the door, "I will do what I can to get to the bottom of this. You need to go home and act like everything is fine. I will have more questions once I get that list."

Jane smiled and moved in close and kissed Ella on the lips. Ella kissed her back briefly but pulled away much to the dismay of Jane, "Sorry, I couldn't resist. You still have the most amazing lips I've ever tasted."

"I'll call you later." Ella said with a smile as she opened the door for Jane.

** End of Chapter 1**

**Feedback and comments are always welcome and appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Note**: I'm posting chapter 2 now to keep it inline with episode 2 of the show. From here on out I shall post a new chapter every Tuesday.

**Chapter 2**.

**Riley and Jonah's apartment**.

Riley waited until she heard Jonah leave before she came out of the bedroom. She grabbed her cell phone from her purse and pushed Ella's number and sat down on the sofa as she waited for her to pickup.

Ella smiled at seeing Riley's name pop up on her phone, "How are you? How did thing go with the police?"

"Not well." Riley groaned, turning onto her side and stretching out on the sofa, "I lied about how well I knew Sydney. I don't know what got into me. I just froze when they asked about her. I felt guilty and I didn't even do anything. Not to her, not now anyway. Why did we have to do that?"

"I want you to take a deep breath and remember that you are not guilty. You did not kill her. What we did with Sydney is not a crime. It may not be very nice in some people's eyes, but let's face it she deserved it. I didn't want her dead either, but someone did."

"You don't think that tape is going to show us as vindictive evil little bitches? Cause that's what we were. Why did you have to get back at her? Wasn't your success enough?"

"Let's not rehash that night. I don't believe in regrets." Ella explained bluntly, "We don't always make the best decisions in life, but to sit and cry about them after the fact isn't going to change anything. If I recall after we spent that night with Sydney you were insatiable in bed for like weeks, still turned on by everything did with her."

"So, I feel guilt. I wish you did." Riley said angrily, moving the phone from her ear for a moment.

"That's not fair. You know what she did to me. She tried to ruin me. What did I do really?" Ella questioned, "My whole plan was to get her on tape doing things that she might regret, but she's a lot like me, there really isn't anything she wouldn't do, that's why the night was probably more fun for her than it was for me."

"I was always confused by what you hoped to get out of that night."

"Sydney once told me some of her deepest darkest fantasies and some were pretty taboo even for me. I guess I didn't think it through, because all the naughty ones were pretty much illegal so we couldn't even do them, well without risking some serious jail time anyway." Ella said with a cute smile, "I knew we should've picked up some girl from high school and really got something worth taping."

"Oh yes, 'I'm sure it's perfectly legal to provide underage girls to people, why would that be wrong?" Riley asked sarcastically, "I know it sucks that Sydney ended up enjoying that night, but so did we, so it wasn't a total loss. Anyway, Jonah is suspicious of me because I lied, so it's like everything is falling apart at once."

Ella got up from her chair and paced in front of her desk, "Riley please, you need to get yourself together. Do you want me to come over there? I will."

"No, I'm fine." Riley said as she sat back up on the sofa, "I just want this to be over. Jonah can't find out about that tape."

"Do think that's going to be any worse than when you tell him about us?"

"Have you even thought about what's going to happen with your friendship with Jonah once this comes out?" Riley asked, knowing that she faced much the same dilemma, "You're his friend first, but you're also his publicist, manager, agent and so much more. That could be over."

"I'm trying not to think of that. I know that everything is going to change but I also know that this is right." Ella said proudly, before sitting back in her big comfy chair, "You know, I've spent my life avoiding this moment and I never expected to feel this for you. No offense, but we never really hit it off did we? How long did it take before we were even civil to each other? Somewhere along the way things changed for us and in a big way. I want to believe that Jonah will get over this and that we can stay friends."

"And you worry about my emotional state?" Riley said with a spontaneous laugh, "That's the most unrealistic thing I've heard and I'm an optimist. Jonah is not getting over this, ever. This is going to do a number on him that will probably require Dr. Phil's attention. He's losing his girlfriend of five years to his best friend of even longer, who happens to be a girl. While he may not be surprised at you hooking up with a girl, I think he'll fall off his chair when he finds out I'm in love with you."

"I'm not going to think negative." Ella said shaking her head at Riley's doomsday scenario, "If Jonah can't handle this then there's nothing I can do about it. My focus is on you. Contrary to popular opinion I do have a heart and I do care about Jonah's feelings, but I'm not going to give you up to prevent the inevitable."

"We can't tell him now. He actually liked Sydney. I should never have said yes to his proposal, it's just making everything so much worse."

"Oh I agree 100%. That was incredibly dumb." Ella said in a matter of fact way, "We talked about this. You knew it was possibility he might propose because he told me about he was thinking about. You were warned."

"Yes Ella I know." Riley snapped.

Ella cringed at how she must've sounded, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I know you didn't mean for this to happen. I really do want to come see you. I hate you being there alone. I want to be the one that comforts you tonight when you get into bed."

"I know you do and I want that to and we'll have that very soon. I promise. I just hope they catch the killer so we can move on."

Ella clicked on her email program and saw 4 messages waiting from Jane, "Listen Riley, I have to get back to work, but if you need me just call. I love you."

Riley smiled every time she heard those words come out of Ella's mouth, "I love you to. I'll call you in the morning. Don't work too hard."

"You know I never do." Ella said with a smile as she closed her cell phone and pulled up the first message from Jane.

"Ella, when I got back home I had two emails waiting from the same person, but look at the third one. Either I'm being blackmailed by two different people or he's trying to blackmail me twice. I've been too afraid to look at the video, would you please watch it and tell me if it's the same one. When is this going to end?"

Ella leaned back in her chair, shook her head and scrolled down to the last email. After checking it for viruses she opened it up.

It didn't take long to realize it was a different video. It began with a shot of Jane's front door, zooming in on the address and then the camera made its way through her house and up the long winding staircase until he came to her bedroom. Only this time Jane wasn't with anyone, she was simply naked on her bed enjoying herself complete with numerous toys and her own videos to watch.

Ella fast forwarded through much of the tape, stopping when she saw Jane get out of bed and walk over to her bedroom window. She appeared to be waving down to someone and as Ella ff'd more of the tape she quickly found out who she was waving to when a beautiful brunette walked into the bedroom, removed a large trench coat and stood before Jane completely naked.

As Ella looked at the brunette closer she almost fell out of her seat. She grabbed the remote, searched for the zoom and zoomed in on the woman's face. Sure enough it was Lauren Yung, something she did not expect in her wildest dreams.

Watching the rest of the tape became much more erotic for her as she got to see Lauren in a very different light.

After feeling more than a little turned on, Ella clicked on the video and did what she knew she shouldn't do and made a copy of it for her own personal collection.

Ella picked up her phone and called Jane.

"Hello?" a man's voice asked.

"Is Jane there?" Ella asked, not recognizing the voice on the phone.

"She's busy right now can I ask who's calling?"

"I was just wondering if you were happy with your long distance provider, because I have a deal for you that I think you're going to love. Let me tell you about it." Ella let out a sigh of relief when the phone went dead, but the relief was quickly replaced with a sense of fear as she wondered just who was in Jane's house.

**Melrose Place Complex.**

Lauren walked into the courtyard, walked up and knocked on Riley's door.

Riley opened the door and smiled when she saw Lauren, happily reaching in and giving her a hug, "I'm glad you stopped by. How are you doing?"

"I'm okay. Can I come in? I need to talk to you in private. Is Jonah home?"

"No, he's out doing some project, so come in."

"Thanks." Lauren said, walking slowly past Riley, "I know this isn't the best time, but something happened tonight and I don't know what to do about it."

"What happened? At work?"

"No, when I checked my email tonight I found something very disturbing. Someone is trying to blackmail me and they are using a video to do it."

"What kind of video?"

"You know the kind. The sex tape kind." Lauren said softly, "I had no idea I was being taped okay, but I can't have this getting out. I'm so close to having everything I've dreamed of."

"I don't mean to pry but who are you in the tape with?"

Lauren paused for a moment, but chose the safe way out, "I don't want to say. I don't think you know them so it doesn't matter. Why would anyone blackmail me? I have no money. I'm barely making enough to make it through medschool as it is."

Riley sat still trying to piece together everything Lauren was saying, "I don't know what to say. I guess you don't want the police involved?"

"No, I want this to go away. I just don't get it. This happened a couple years ago. Why now?"

"I don't even know what's on the tape, so I have no idea what to tell you. This isn't something I'm good at." Riley said, disappointed at being out of her element of expertise, "Have you talked to Auggie or David? They might be able to help, but Ella might be the best person to ask. She has a lot of connections and she gets things done."

Lauren shook her head vehemently, "I don't want Auggie or David to see this tape. Ella might like it too much, but maybe you're right, she does seem to have a way of finding things out."

"Well, you don't think this is connected to Sydney's murder do you?"

"Oh god, I never thought of that, but you're right, the timing is too much of coincidence. I still don't understand why. Don't people tend to blackmail rich people?"

"What are their demands?" Riley asked.

"They didn't really say. It ended with a message saying they'd be touch."

"Do you have Ella's cell phone number?"

"I think so, somewhere." Lauren reached into her purse, fiddled around a bit before pulling out a small black book, "Yep, it's here. Is she at work now?"

"Yes, I just talked to her a while ago."

"Thanks for listening to me. I needed that." Lauren said with a relieved smile, "Anyway, now that we've talked about me, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine." Riley smiled, quickly getting to her feet and leading Lauren towards the door, "You should go call Ella before she leaves work. Sometimes she shuts her cell phone off so she won't be interrupted while she's out clubbing."

"Okay, well we need together for dinner again one night again, how about tomorrow night? I miss talking to you. I know I've been busy at work, but I feel like I'm missing out on what's going on with you."

"Tomorrow night sounds great." Riley said with a smile, still nudging Lauren towards the door, "Don't worry about me. You need to take care of this problem first. I don't want you paying off some creep that's blackmailing you."

"I can't do that, I wish I could, I just want it to be over. That's my fear, that this going to be sent to the hospital or my family or god knows who else." Lauren said, her moment of relief quickly replaced by the same fear and stress she had when she arrived.

Riley walked over and gave Lauren another hug, "It's going to be okay. If you need anything you let me know. I mean that."

"I will." Lauren said as she let go off Riley and walked back towards her own apartment.

** Ella's Office**.

Ella stood over a tall, heavy set man's shoulder, looking at the file he was holding, "Does that say that Jane was arrested for possession of cocaine?"

"Yes it does. July of 2006, but the case never made it to court, she plea bargained it down to a misdemeanor."

"She wouldn't use drugs. She's been against them since I met her. Something doesn't seem right. What else is on her record Eddie?"

Looking back at his folder, Eddie rubbed his goatee as he skimmed over the charges filed against Jane over the years, "In July of 2002 she filed a complaint against her husband for domestic violence, alleging he hit her. Again the charges were dropped and that's the end of it. Then in April of 2003 she was charged with drinking and driving, but again the charges were dropped. In December of 2003 she was charged with assaulting a woman named Sydney Andrews and yet again the charges were dropped."

"Sydney was her sister. I can see them having a fight but I don't believe Jane would ever press charges. Can these be forged or faked at all?"

"No, this is her official file. Everything on it is real." Eddie replied, pointing at the official LAPD insignia on the documents, "There's one last charge and it's from April of 2009 and it's a charge of breaking and entering. The address is 214, Malibu Beach, the name on the address is Michael Mancini."

"That's her ex husband. Does it say what she stole?"

Eddie shook his head, "Nope, and like the other charges, these were dropped a week later, so she's never had to go to court for anything."

"What else do you have for me?"

"This is just the preliminary report, but it seems that Jane Andrews has had a very active sex life. She's been seen with numerous wealthy women over the past three years and there are rumors of her marriage being on the rocks and her wandering eyes are the main cause of it. Her husband is very rich but spends most of his time overseas where he conducts the majority of his business. One of the women that she's been seen with the most is Jo Reynolds."

"Is there anything that stands out as being negative? A business deal gone bad, a friendship that turned sour, anything that would give someone a motive to blackmail her?"

"I've been trying to get my hands on any video footage of Mrs. Andrews, but a lot of it is still being processed by my team. There are names here than I can look into further. Is there anyone you want me to start with?"

Ella paused for a moment before answering, "Yes, Michael Mancini and Jo Reynolds. They've known Jane the longest so you might as well start there."

"Okay, I'll get on that in the morning." Eddie nodded as she got to his feet. He grabbed his leather jacket from the back of the chair and walked towards the door, stopping just before he reached it, "Oh, one more thing, we checked on Mrs. Andrews' home and she is safe and sound, but we have no idea who answered the phone earlier. I have people watching her house and her phone is bugged, so if anything new pops up I'll let you know."

"Thank you Eddie, I appreciate it." Ella said sincerely.

"Always happy to help a beautiful woman out." Eddie smiled, hoping to one day catch Ella's eyes, even if he knew it was a long shot.

"Keep up the good work and call me if you find out anything." Ella waved as Eddie walked out the door and just as she began looking over the files again her cell phone began to ring. "Hello?"

"Hi Ella, it's Lauren, I was wondering if we could meet somewhere later on. I need to talk to you about something very personal and very private."

"Okay, I'm off work now, but if you want private why don't I meet you at your place in a half hour?"

"That sounds good. Thanks." Lauren said with a relieved sigh.

Leaning back in her favorite chair, she closed her eyes and began thinking back to her first meeting with Jane Andrews.

** June 22****nd****, 2006**  
**UCLA Medical Center**.

Lauren lugged her stack of heavy books down the steps of the building, juggling a few on top that continued to shift every step of the way until finally the inevitable happened and they all came tumbling down at her feet.

As if being in lectures for 8 hours straight wasn't enough, now she had to deal with people stepping all over her expensive medical books. Each time she had a few gathered up she'd get bumped by someone and they'd all fall down again.

With her frustration growing by the second, she was joined on the ground by a beautiful woman, who helped her gather up the remaining books and even walked all the way through the busy parking lot to her car.

Once she had the books safely in the back seat of her car, Lauren turned around and smiled at the attractive woman, "I can't thank you enough for this. I should never have been carrying all of them with me at one time."

"I was glad to help. I've had days like those myself, when nothing seems to go right." The woman said with a laugh as she slid her hand over Lauren's arm.

Lauren looked down at the woman's hand and then looked back up to her eyes and she knew something was going on, she just wasn't sure what it was but she sure wanted to find out, "I'm just headed out to get something to eat, would you like to join me? I'd really like to buy you dinner for helping me out. I was about to have a meltdown and you saved me a very embarrassing situation. What do you say?"

"You don't have to do that."

"I want to. It's just dinner."

"Okay, but I need to get up to my office first. I left some papers up there and I really need to get them. Where would you like to eat?"

"I hate to say it but my budget isn't all that great now, I do know this little diner a couple blocks away that makes some a really good chicken parmesan."

"Give me the name of the place and I'll meet you there in about 15 minutes."

"Great." Lauren said with a satisfied smile, "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't even introduce myself. My name is Lauren. Lauren Yung."

"Hello Lauren. It's nice to meet you." The woman said with a wide smile, holding out her hand for Lauren, "My name is Jane Andrews and I'm on the board of directors of the medical department."

Lauren held Jane's hand a little longer than she should've, savoring the touch of another person for the first time in what seemed like forever, "Oh, it's not a conflict of interest is it if we have dinner?"

Jane shook her head and smiled, "No, that rule only applies to students and teachers, doctors and interns, but even then it's really hard to enforce."

"Okay then. The name of diner is Marcelli's." Lauren said as she slid into her car. She then leaned over and opened the passenger side window, "You just turn left at the main exit and you'll see the big sign on the right hand side of the road two blocks down."

"I'll see you soon." Jane said, smiling as she watched Lauren get into her car and drive off.

**Marcelli's Diner**.

Lauren sat in the back booth, flipping through one of her books but not really paying attention to anything in it because she was still distracted by the woman she met earlier. Wondering just what was going through her mind when their eyes met.

"Hi Lauren." Jane said as she sat down opposite her.

"Oh hi, I didn't even see you come in."

"Yes, you seem to be a million miles away. Do tell what you were thinking about." Jane asked in a sexy whisper

"Nothing really." Lauren said, smiling at the way Jane was looking at her.

"Listen Lauren," Jane said with a breathless whisper, taking her hands and squeezing them as she smiled at her, "I'm a very busy woman and as much as I'd love to sit and talk to you all day long and learn all about you, I need to speed things up a bit. I like to think I can read people pretty well and I'm hoping I've read your eyes right because I'd like to invite you back to may place right now. I have a beautiful pool out back and when we are finished making love I'd love to share a dip in it afterwards."

Lauren was speechless for a moment, but she snapped out of it enough to smile back at Jane, "I've never done anything like this before. I mean I don't know what to do. I'm not making sense, but I'm feeling strangely terrified all of a sudden."

"Take my hand, hold on tight and you will have a night you'll never forget." Jane promised, holding out her hand for Lauren, "Let's go."

Every instinct she had told her to say no, but when she looked up at the beautiful smile and saw the way she was looking back at her and that was all she needed. She got up from the table, reached out and took Jane's hand and happily followed her out the door.

** End of Flashback**.

**End of Chapter 2**

**Feedback and comments are always welcome and appreciated.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3.  
**

A knock at her door brought Lauren back to reality as she jumped to her feet. After checking her hair in the wall mirror, she marched towards her door. She opened it up to find her newest neighbor standing in front of her, "Violet, is everything okay? You look upset."

Violet stepped inside, nervously walking into the living room, "I'm not really upset, I'm just a little shy about what I want to ask you."

"You don't have to be shy, you can ask me anything."

"I wanted to know how things went last night."

"Oh, that." Lauren said, instantly regretting her last comment, "I'm not proud of what I did, but yes I did go to the hotel and I did what I never thought I'd do, I took money for sex. It was only this one time. It's not like this guy is going to keep doing this. He's on a flight back to Chicago already, so that's it."

"I wanted to know what it was like. Did it feel any different; did you love it or hate it?" Violet asked, clearly excited to hear the answer.

"No, I didn't love it" Lauren replied, annoyed that she had to answer such a question, "In fact it was probably the worst sex he's ever had, because I wasn't into at all. I felt cheap and dirty and I still do. Why are you so interested in this?"

"Well, I had someone come up to me today and offer something very similar."

"Don't tell me it's the same guy?"

Violet laughed, "No, it wasn't a guy. It was this beautiful woman. Her name is Wendi and she offered me a chance to make a lot of money."

"Doing what exactly?"

"You know, having sex, but her specialty is providing this service to wealthy women."

"You're kidding?"

"No, I'm not." Violet stated proudly, handing Lauren a business card from the woman, "She actually took me to her office and I saw firsthand all the beautiful girls she had working there. It looked more like a modeling agency than an escort service."

Lauren looked the card over, amazed at how professional it seemed, "It's still getting paid to have sex with a stranger. Do you think you'll feel any better if it's with a woman?"

"I don't know, but in a way it sounds kind of erotic." Violet said with a shy smile, "I like the idea, but I have no experience with women. I've kissed a girl a couple times, but that doesn't really count. I was wondering if you had maybe done this before, I mean not for money, but for fun?"

"Why are you asking me that?"

"I need to practice and I thought maybe you could help." Violet replied calmly.

Lauren let out a laugh and began to look around the room, "Now I know there's a hidden camera around somewhere and I'm in the middle of some huge practical joke. Is that you Ella? Riley? No, I bet it's Auggie, he'd think this was funny."

"So you don't like the idea of being with me?"

"Violet, you are my neighbor," Lauren said, stunned that she had to explain this at all, "I've known you for a couple weeks, but even if I had known you for years that would still be a very strange thing to ask."

"You know what it's like when you need money." Violet explained, not letting Lauren forget what she did, "I think this job would be so much better than working at a fast food place forever. At least sex is fun, right?"

"That's hardly the point. I can't just have sex with someone I just met. I need more than that."

"Are you sure about that?" Violet said with a questioning glance.

Lauren shook her head at Violet's question, "Last night is not who I am. Maybe this sounds hypocritical, but I would never suggest anyone do what I did."

Violet quickly put a smile back on her face, "I don't want to fight or cause any problems, but I need your help."

"Um, having sex with someone isn't what I'd call help."

"I like you." Violet smiled and moved in close to Lauren, "You're beautiful and sexy and I would have no problem enjoying it."

"Violet, slow down for a second." Lauren said, backing up a few more steps, "Why do you need money so bad?"

"Everyone needs money." Violet replied, confused as to why Lauren didn't know that. "I'd like to get ahead in life. Live in a better place, drive a better car and yes maybe even work at a better job, but I have to start somewhere."

"You don't even know this woman and you're ready to do something you'll probably regret sooner than later. Think about this long and hard before you make any decision."

"It's not that simple." Violet said, her smile turning to a frown as she turned and walked towards the sofa, "I know I'm not very smart. I thought of marrying some rich guy but I just wasn't into that, but this really feels right. She didn't manipulate me into anything. She even said I was too pretty to be doing it, but she thought she'd ask anyway."

"Isn't that sweet of her? What a heart of gold she has." Lauren mocked, before walking over to Violet and grabbing her by the shoulders, "Wake up, she's using you to make money and that's it."

"I don't agree. Please don't be mad."

"I'm not mad, it's your life and it's your choice, but I hope you don't do it."

"What about showing me what to do? Can we still do that?" Violet asked with a big wide smile.

"I can't believe you'd ask that again." Lauren said, wondering what must be going on inside that head of hers, "You don't think it would be just a bit awkward to have sex with me and then act like nothing happened?"

"It's not for money, so I don't see what problem is."

"No, I don't suppose you do see a problem." Lauren's eyes lit up when her doorbell rang and she ran towards it as fast as she could, more than happy to let Ella in.

Ella walked in and waved at Violet, "Hi there."

"Hi." Violet said as she turned her attention towards Ella, "Have you ever been with a girl?"

Lauren put her hand over her face in disbelief, "Violet, would you stop."

"No, it's fine. I don't mind answering." Ella smiled and walked towards Violet, "I love women and I've been with many women in my life and I've loved every second of it. There is nothing like feeling the soft smooth silky skin of another woman against your own skin. Hmm, that reminds me of a time when I was with that reporter from KTLA, now she had the softest skin you'll ever see or touch or kiss or lick, hmm, I wonder if she still works there."

"Thank you for sharing Ella." Lauren said with an eyeroll.

Ella smiled, not catching the sarcasm at all, "Glad to help, so who wants to be with another woman, you or Violet?"

"I do." Violet said, raising her hand and smiling.

"I like that." Ella stopping to look at the two women once more, "Oh I get it, you two are hooking up? I can leave if that's what you want."

Lauren lunged at Ella, grabbing her arm and holding it tightly, "You are not going anywhere."

"Have you ever had sex for money?" Violet asked as if it were a perfectly normal thing to ask.

Even Ella was caught off guard by that question, "You sure ask some personal questions for a relative stranger."

"Yes she does, doesn't she." Lauren said, happy that Ella finally agreed with her, "Now, please don't answer her."

"Why, I think it's kind of fun, almost like truth or dare. I haven't played that since I was in high school." Ella said, her momentary hesitation long gone, "Anyway, I haven't had sex for money, but I have been offered money for sex more than I care to remember. I must look like hooker or something, because this happens almost on a weekly basis."

"By guys only?" Violet wondered.

"Mostly, but I've had my share off offers from women as well. I'm just not ready for that, but I won't rule anything out."

"You're not helping." Lauren said, nudging Ella with her elbow.

Ella laughed and grabbed her shoulder in mock agony, "Ouch. I said I'm not doing it."

"Violet, I have an idea, why don't I try and get you a job at the hospital? I know it's not glamorous but the pay is actually very good." Lauren said as upbeat as she could and then turned and stared at Ella.

Ella took the cue from Lauren and put her arm around Violet, "Oh right, and I could get a job where Auggie works. The waitresses there load up on tips, I should I know, I tip them a ton. He's got some beautiful girls working there."

"That sounds like fun." Violet said excitedly, "Is it hard to carry those trays with glasses? I'm not very coordinated. Would I lose pay if I dropped them?"

Ella smiled, "If you wear the right outfit you should still make more than you lose."

"Ella, can I talk to over here please." Lauren pulled Ella into the bathroom, "Since you didn't catch on to my hints, I'm trying to get her away from jobs that basically make money off her body."

"Why?" Ella asked, genuinely puzzled by Lauren's comment, "She admitted she's not the brightest bulb in the world, maybe her body is the only chance she has to make some cash before mother nature crushes that dream too."

"That's a nice way to look at things." Lauren said shaking her head, but smiling, "Ella, you're beautiful and you've succeeded without having to resort to using your body, why not let her do the same."

"Well, I also got straight A's in school and got a full ride scholarship to UCLA, where I continued to further my education, so you can't compare the situations." Ella said, more than happy to discuss her academic successes, "It doesn't seem like Violet is going to get ahead based on her academic skills, so as I see it, she has three choices. One, use that sexy body of hers to make as much money as she can while it holds up. Two, marry some rich sugar daddy and live off the divorce settlement or three, work at McDonald's for 10 years, become manager and work there for another 10 years, by then nobody will care what happens to her."

"You are so full of hope." Lauren said with a cute smile.

"I call it like I see it." Ella said unapologetically, "What's your honest opinion as to what Violet's chances are of succeeding are based on her intellect alone?"

Lauren couldn't argue, "Okay, so maybe it would be hard, but do know any 40 year old cocktail waitresses? No, because she's got about 5 years of this and they'll replace her with another 18 year old off the busses from Oregon."

"Life sucks sometimes." Ella pointed out so eloquently, "Personally I hope she finds a way to live her dream, whatever that is, but I'm telling you if she passes up a chance to make some easy cash that's not helping her."

"What you don't know is that she wants to work for an escort service, selling her body for sex. Do you think that she could be happy doing this?"

"I don't know her well enough to say for sure, but it seems like she values money more than anything in life, so if she can make some money maybe she will be happy." Ella said as seriously as she could manage, before smiling again, "As for the sex part, yes she'll love that."

"Speaking of sex, she wants someone with some experience to help show her how to have sex with another woman, are you up for some teaching?"

"Let me guess, she asked you and you froze?"

Lauren smiled at how well Ella knew her, "I might have a little, but I'm not the expert in this department."

Ella couldn't help but smile as she remembered the tape from earlier, "After what I saw today, I think you know just what to do."

Lauren's face turned white as ghost, "What? How could you know?"

Ella smiled at Lauren's reaction, "A strange thing happened today, while I working on this other project I came across a video of you and Jane Andrews having some intensely hot sex a few years back. I didn't know you had it in you."

"Oh god, is this on the internet already? Please say no." Lauren asked frantically stomping her feet on the floor.

"No, don't freak out." Ella said, grabbing a hold of Lauren and calming her down. "Nobody else has seen this video. I promise. Well, except whoever made it, but back to Violet for a second, why didn't you say yes? You're not seeing anyone right so why not enjoy yourself? Violet is sure sexy, so why turn down such a friendly offer?"

"Sometimes I wish I were more like you." Lauren said with a warm smile, "But, all I kept thinking was that I'd be taking advantage of her and then there was the whole thought of 'teaching' someone and it just killed the mood right there. How can teaching be fun? It sounds so clinical."

"You teach by showing, that's how. I've been with so many girls who were having their first experience with another girl and I love showing them what to do. They all act so innocent, like it's beyond their grasp what turns another girl on when they should already know, luckily they all catch on very quickly, such good memories." Ella said as her smile widened thinking back to so many of her most enjoyable conquests. After Lauren cleared her throat Ella snapped back to reality, "Anyway, I kind of like being with first timers, they are so full of enthusiasm and passion and their excitement is so addictive."

"More over sharing Ella." Lauren said covering her ears, before smiling back at Ella, "So do you want to help Violet then?"

"Hmm, I wish I could, but my days of teaching may be over."

"Get out of here." Lauren gasped as she pushed Ella backwards, more than a little stunned by Ella's comment, "Did I hear right? Ella Simms is ready for, OMG, I can't even say the word, monogamy?"

Ella smiled at Lauren's blatant mocking, "Make fun, I deserve it, but in my defense I never thought I'd meet someone so perfect for me. Someone who gets me, gets my humor, can put up with my sarcasm and my career and still loves me. I never thought that was possible and I never really wanted that before."

"Oh god this huge. I have to tell Riley, she'll never believe this." Lauren said as she turned towards the bathroom door.

Ella grabbed Lauren before she took a step forward. "No, that's not a good idea.

"Why, I thought you two were getting along better?"

"We are, but she's dealing with the proposal and I'm sure that's enough to stress her right now."

"Can you believe she didn't say yes right away?" Lauren asked with a surprised smile, "I'm glad she finally did. Jonah is such a great guy. They are so perfect together."

"Yes, so you keep saying." Ella said, turning away from Lauren as she did.

"You don't agree?" Lauren asked, spinning Ella around to face her, "Is there something you know that I don't. Do you know why Riley would say no first?"

Ella deftly avoided answering the barrage of questions Lauren tossed her way, "I don't know how we got to talking about Riley, we are here to talk about your problem which I'm guessing has to do with the tape I saw today. Right or wrong?"

"Yes, and I didn't realize you knew Jane. So she got one to? A blackmail note with the video?"

"Yes she did, but unlike you Jane's loaded. She's married to a gizillionaire and she has her own job, or jobs really, she's on numerous committees and does just fine on her own."

"Well I don't have any money right now. My dad lost his job and he was helping pay my way through medical school."

"Then this doesn't make any sense. Nobody got a ransom note. They seemed more interested in shaking you up than getting money from you. Her husband has to be a suspect here, but he's overseas. Have you ever met him?"

"No, never. I don't know even what he looks like. He was never around when I was with Jane."

"I have a PI looking into this, but if you want me to help I'm going to need a list of your friends and colleagues and anyone else you know. Things like this tend to be personal and that means it's someone you both know."

Lauren grabbed Ella's arm, "You can't my friends why you're talking to them. I don't want anyone to know about this tape. My dad would have a heart attack."

"Let's hope he never gets to see his little girl having sex and his heart can stay just the way it is."

"I'll get you a list of everyone I can think of." Lauren said softly before remembering her other problem, "Now, what about Violet."

"Sleep with her, it's the only way to end this."

"Thank you for your winning advice." Lauren said with a sigh, stepping out of the bathroom and into the living room where Violet was now standing completely naked in front of both her and Ella.

"I'm ready." Violet said as the two women approached her.

Ella could not stop smiling as she walked towards the front door, "As much as I'd like to stay and watch, I have to go, so you two have an amazing night and please call me with the details in the morning." Ella opened the door and closed it as she smiled at Lauren on her way out, "Bye bye."

Lauren leaned against her door, stared at Violet's naked body and shook her head, "Oh what the hell," and walked over, put her arms around Violet and began kissing her hard on the lips. Violet was quick to respond and even quicker to put her hands all over Lauren's sexy round ass and so began the night of teaching.

**End of Chapter 3.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4. **

**Ella's Apartment**.

Ella opened the door, stepped inside, put her purse on the coffee table and fell onto the sofa. Her eyes were tired and her body was drained and suddenly the sofa seemed like a perfect place to be. As she drifted off to sleep her phone began to ring. Not wanting to move she let her answering machine get the call.

"Ella, pick up. Ella, pick up. Look, this is important. I found something out about Sydney that affects you. Pick up now."

Not having much choice, Ella slid off the sofa and grabbed her phone, "Couldn't this wait until morning David?"

"No it can't." David said, happily sifting through the pile of papers in front of him, "I've been snooping around Sydney's office and I found this hidden compartment e and there's quite a few interesting documents in here. Most seem to be about you and what did I tell you, she has a video of you, Riley, and her having some seriously hot sex and once I get a copy of it I'll make sure you can have this one. But, there's also some information about you and Sydney here. Things I didn't know about. I need you to explain some of them to me, because there's a few things there that I find very unsettling."

"What the hell are you talking about? I was never with Sydney, we never had sex, other than the night with Riley and Sydney that is."

"I didn't say sex, I said they were about you two. Did you have some business dealings with Sydney?"

Ella pulled the phone away from her hear and shook her head in disgust, "Whatever happened between us has nothing to do with you."

"It does, because Sydney is very meticulous, she's a lot like you in that respect, she details a plan to extort money from Michael using me as the pawn and you as the willing friend who manipulates me. Is this true?"

"David, stop listening to the rantings of a dead woman. A crazy dead woman I might add." Ella yelled, getting to her feet trying to think of what to say, "Here's a question might ask yourself, did that ever happen? No, it did not. So whatever she has written there is a lie. It's probably just something she hoped to use against me one day."

"I want the truth. Did you ever discuss a plan to use me to get money from my dad?"

"I'm not going to do this. Nothing ever happened. It didn't happen because I like you. I consider you my friend." Ella lowered her head, kicked the sofa and sat back down, "But fine, Sydney did come up with this plan. It was her idea and yes she thought I could use my friendship with you to help make it come true, but I wouldn't go through with it. That's one of the reasons things began to fall apart for us. Do you believe me or not?"

"I want to Ella, but as I said, there's a lot of stuff here that's very troubling. This was just one thing." David said, flipping over to the next document, "Did you ever work with Sydney to rip people off?"

"Damn it, I am not going to rehash something that I may or may not have done 5 years ago. I was just a kid when I met Sydney. Yes, I did things that may have been unethical and possibly illegal, but I'm not the same person I was then. I was young and naïve and Sydney was charming and charismatic and she made me feel like I was special. So sure I did things for her, but I repeat we did not have sex."

"You sure are hung up on the sex thing aren't you? And I never asked about it. Interesting." David said with a smile, "Anyway, one of the people on this list of your victims is Jonah. Are you going to explain this one?"

Ella grit her pretty white teeth at having to deal with a past she'd hoped would stay buried forever, "I can't believe you are doing this. I'm asking you to take all that crap and burn it. It's not going to do anything but ruin people's lives. This is Sydney trying to put the final nail into my coffin. That's all it is. I bet most of that stuff is a lie. Please David, don't do this."

"I can't just ignore this Ella. I mean you haven't denied doing this to Jonah. I remember a time when he said he lost a huge chunk of cash on some investment that went bad. This is true isn't it? Answer me Ella." David yelled, all the while taking photos of every piece of information he could find.

"I don't want to bring up your past, because it's a lot worse than mine, but the point is we both did things in the past that we're not proud of. To this day I feel horrible about what I did to Jonah. I do. I've spent the last 5 years trying to repay that debt and I think I've done a pretty good job of it. His career is flying, he's easily recouped the money he lost and he doesn't need to know this. It won't do any good to bring this up."

"I don't want to hurt you Ella, I'm not doing this to stir up trouble, but Jonah is my friend to and this is a bit different than trashing some stranger. There's one other thing that is in here that I need to ask you about."

"No, no more. I know this has already affected your opinion of me. I can hear it in your voice. You are so disappointed and disillusioned, so I'm not going to keep defending my past. I admit I should have asked more questions about what I was doing and said no to most of it, but I won't let the past bring me down. That's not going to happen."

"You will answer this, because it's about me again." David said, uncharacteristically raising his voice at Ella, "This document says that you know who my mother is. I can see Sydney knowing this, she knew my dad for years, and I asked her so many times who it was and she kept denying it, but now I know she knew. So I'm asking you as my friend if you know who my mother is?"

"You need to talk to your dad about this. He's the only one who knows the real answer to that. Sydney once told me Jane was your mother and then she said it was Kimberly and then she said she was, but since she slept with you I'm sure as hell hoping that isn't true. So, I honestly don't know the answer. I don't think it's any of those women really, it was probably a one night stand, I'm sorry, but that's what I think happened."

"I'm going to believe you on this. I don't think you'd keep that from me. I know you want this to be over, but I just one more thing here, it's a picture of you with my dad. I can't believe this. You said you'd never met him. This picture is dated 2007 and it shows you in a very skimpy bikini sitting by the pool with him drinking something. If you slept with my dad we're over. There's no going back from that."

"Would you stop doing this." Ella yelled at the top of her lungs before letting out a deep breath and shaking her head yet again, "First of all, I met your dad through Sydney. She wanted me to sleep with him. This is before we met, just remember that. Even before that I knew it was wrong. It felt wrong. She wanted to get back at Michael and she wanted a video of him with another woman and I almost went through with it, but I couldn't. I'm not a slut. I know not everyone will agree with that, but I did not have sex with your father then or ever."

"Okay, I believe you, but you have to see how all this looks. I just listed some of the things that stood out, there's so much more here."

"I don't care what's there. That does not define me as a person. I think our history should be what counts. I've been a good friend to you and I've never done one thing to hurt, deceive, or lie to you. My past is not perfect, I made a lot of bad decisions, but I never set out to hurt anyone."

"I need you to come here and look at some of this stuff, because I have a lot more questions for you."

"No, I'm going to bed. I'll do it tomorrow."

"Fine, but I hope I don't find more dirt from your past in here."

"You probably will, but you have to look at the source. It's Sydney, you know she only did this to hurt me. If you want to throw away our friendship because of things that happened before we met then fine, you do that, but it's not my choice. Goodnight David." Ella slammed the phone down and walked slowly back to her bedroom, kicking off her shoes, slipping out of her tight dress and falling onto her nice soft bed, hoping to forget her past.

** Jonah and Riley's Apartment**.

Jonah woke up to an empty bed and as he turned to look at the clock he jumped to his feet, rushed into the living room and saw Riley calmly eating her breakfast and reading the paper, "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"What?" Riley asked as she spun around to look at her soon to be ex, "You didn't tell me to; besides, we have separate alarm clocks for this reason. What's going on?"

"I told you last night that I had a big meeting this morning with that producer. I don't think he can be objective about my work now, but I'd like him to at least see my movie without the fear of being exposed. Now I'm going to be late."

"I'm sorry, but I don't remember you saying anything about this."

"You say I have a bad memory?" Jonah said, staring deep into Riley's eyes as he moved in closer, "Is something wrong? You're acting different again."

Riley quickly turned away from Jonah, "I don't think now is the time to get into it. You should go to your meeting and show him what a great filmmaker you are."

"No, ever since I proposed you've been avoiding me." Jonah said, just as quickly moving back in front of Riley, "Even when you said yes, it felt like a no. Why don't I see joy and excitement in your eyes anymore? Why don't I see a woman so in love, so happy that she can't wait to be with me? Why do you pull away when I get close? Last night in bed you were like a stranger. I need to know why. At first I didn't want to know. I was afraid to know, but I can't do this anymore. So no more avoiding, I deserve the truth."

"Jonah, this isn't a good time. I have to get to work soon." Riley said, turning and walking back towards their bedroom.

"Enough Riley, we are not leaving until this settled." Jonah yelled, more than loud enough to get Riley's attention, "Just tell me what's going on with you. We can work it out."

With nowhere to go, Riley let out a sigh and turned around, "I'm sorry Jonah, I never meant for any of this to happen. I liked being the good girl. I really did. But I guess in the end I'm not as good as I thought I was."

"Stop being cryptic."

"You don't know how hard this is. I don't want to hurt you, but there's no way to avoid it now. I'm sorry, but I should never have said yes to your proposal. I can't marry you Jonah."

"What? You don't have to make a decision if you're not ready." Jonah said, his tone changing from angry to hopeful, "I didn't mean to pressure you. I was just so sure you'd say yes."

"I should be saying yes. That's what any girl would say in my place."

"Just not the girl I love."

"I do love you." Riley said, pleading with Jonah to believe her, "I do, but something happened and now everything is all messed up and now I'm going to hurt the nicest guy I know."

"How? I think saying no is bad enough. What more is there?" Jonah said, angry but resigned to fact he was being dumped, "If you don't want to get married and if you don't want to stay together, I'm a big boy, I'll deal with it."

"If only that's all it was." Riley said, walking away from Jonah as she thought about how to continue, "I said something happened and that something is that I met someone else."

Jonahs somewhat calm demeanor changed as he turned and glared at Riley, "What did you say?"

"I know it's hard to hear this, but it just kind of came out of the blue. I never in a million years would've expected this to happen."

"That's nice." Jonah said with a searing dose of sarcasm, "I'm glad you didn't expect to CHEAT ON ME!!! So who is it? David? Auggie? Someone from school?"

"No, it's not them." Riley said, quickly dismissing his list of suspects, "I know you're angry and you should be, but I need you to understand that I didn't seek this out. I didn't chase after someone. I was happy with you. I had everything I wanted, or so I thought."

"I want to know who it is."

"Why does it matter?"

"It just does. Now tell me." Jonah ordered, his normally happy face looking strangely menacing as he glared at Riley.

"This is the part that you're not going to understand it's going to cause so many problems and I know I can't avoid it." Riley tossed her head back and paced around in a circle before stopping in front of Jonah, "Please sit down."

"Sitting will help how?" Jonah asked, almost smiling at the suggestion.

"I don't know, but they always say it, so it must help." Riley said, sitting down beside him, "A couple months ago Ella came over looking for you and you weren't home, but she had something big she needed to talk about."

"Wait a minute. What does Ella have to do with this?" Jonah asked with an annoyed laugh, "I want to do know who you are leaving me for."

"Please just be patient and hear me out."

"Anyway, Ella was upset and since we were getting a long little better I thought I'd ask what the problem was. She took a while to finally open up but we ended up talking the whole night and I don't know what it was but something changed that night. I don't know how to explain how or why, but I began to see Ella in a different light, in a different way. Before she was just this annoying beautiful woman that was way too close to you. I always saw her as a threat, and I guess I never really got to know her properly."

"Are you saying what I think you're saying? Ella is the other man, I mean other person, she's who you're leaving me for?" Jonah got up and began pacing rapidly around the small apartment, shaking his head in disbelief, "This can't be happening. You aren't into girls. I asked you about this how many times? You were adamant that girls just did nothing for you. You didn't understand why men liked watching two girls kiss. You couldn't fathom the idea of a threesome with another woman, because you just weren't into women. Did I get that right?"

"I know that it doesn't make sense, but love never does. This isn't about Ella being beautiful, it's about who she is as a person. She's so much sweeter than I ever thought possible. She's funny and witty and charming and she has so much love in her heart. She cares about me. She loves me. She listens to me. I never thought she cared one bit about my life, but I never gave her a chance to. I was too busy worrying about her stealing you from me to get to know her."

"Maybe you should've kept doing that." Jonah growled as he tried to process what he was hearing.

"I tried to. I really did, but you kept insisting that I be nice to her, make friends with her you'd say. Well, I did. I'm sorry that all this happened, but now you know."

"So you're trying to blame me for this?" Jonah asked, not believing what he'd just heard.

"No, it's not blame." Riley groaned, wondering why she kept saying the wrong thing, "I shouldn't have said that. What happened with Ella and me would've happened eventually. I really believe that. I'm sorry that I fell in love with your friend. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you sooner. I was afraid of dealing with this exact situation. Ella wanted me to tell you much sooner, but I wasn't ready."

"I guess I should thank Ella, maybe I will. I think I need to have a talk with her anyway." Jonah said as he walked towards the front door.

Riley rushed up to him and grabbed his arm, "No Jonah, not like this. You're too upset. You're going to say something you'll regret."

"I don't think that will happen, because I don't know what's worse, you cheating on me or my best friend stabbing me in the back. One thing's for sure, you deserve each other."

"Be mad, but please cool down before you talk to Ella. I don't want everything to go to hell. It doesn't have to be that way. I know you don't believe it now, but we can get through this and I want so much to stay friends with you. Ella is a huge part of your life, just wait a day before you talk to her. Let things cool down first. Please?"

"I'm not making any promises to you. Those days are over. I don't owe you anything now." Jonah opened the and turned back towards Riley, "I'm going to my meeting now and I'll be staying at David's until I find a new place."

"You don't have to do that. This is your place. I know you don't want to hear this now, but I can stay with Ella."

"Oh that's sweet, it really is. It's great that you have a place to go to that's just a couple feet away from here. That won't be awkward at all. I will not be living here much longer. Have a nice day." Jonah slammed the door behind him and walked briskly towards the exit.

Ella rushed towards him before he made it out, "Hey, are you going to the meeting now? I still say you should take his offer. If he wants to pay you and help get your movie you need to take it. Once people see your movie then you'll get even more offers."

"I'm late." Jonah said without even looking at Ella, storming off down the street as fast he could go.

Knowing something was wrong, Ella ran towards Jonah's apartment and pounded on the door until Riley answered. With tears streaming down her face she knew what just happened and quickly wrapped her arms around her, "It's going to be okay. I promise you that."

"Oh Ella, he's so angry. He never gets mad." Riley said, holding onto Ella as tight as she could, "You know that, so it's probably all building inside him and now he's going to explode. I've never seen him look so hurt."

"I know. I'm sorry this had to happen. Are you okay? You don't have to go work today. I'll sit here with you as long as you need."

"No, I can't do that. I need to keep my mind off this." Riley said, wiping the tears from her eyes, "The kids need me and the school already has budge problems so they can't afford to deal with my personal problems."

"I just want you to know that nothing is more important to me than you. I know this is going to be a very unpleasant time for everyone, but I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to leave you to deal with this mess alone. We'll do it together. Okay?"

"Okay. I couldn't get through this without you." Riley said with a momentary sense of relief. That didn't last long. "Oh god, I'm supposed to go dinner with Lauren tonight. She's going to hate me for this."

"She is not. She can't hate anyone." Ella said, laughing off Riley's fears, "She'll be surprised and sad that things ended with Jonah, but she's your friend and she'll support you. She's your friend first. I can come help take the pressure off if you want."

"I appreciate you offering, but I need to this on my own. She deserves to hear it from me."

"If you need anything at all call me." Ella leaned in and gave Riley a long lingering hug, ending with a soft kiss on her lips, "I love you."

Riley smiled, "I love you to. I'll see you later."

Ella stepped out of the apartment to find David talking to Auggie on the other side of the pool. She walked over and stood beside David, "Can I talk to you for a minute."

"Actually, I need to talk to Auggie first. I'll stop by your office later on, okay?"

"Okay then, but call first, I have a lot to do today." Ella said, reluctantly leaving David to talk to Auggie, wishing she could stay behind and listen to their conversation.

"What else did you find out about Ella?" Auggie asked.

"Nothing that I didn't expect." David replied, "Sydney talked about wanting to ruin her almost every day, so most of it was pretty expected."

"I'm guessing Ella hasn't seen what Sydney had on you or me?"

"No and she's not going to."

"Are you sure that's wise move?" Auggie asked, puzzled by David's response, "You know Ella has ways of finding things out. You might be better off just showing her, it's not like it's as bad as what she did."

"Maybe not, but right now I have the upper hand so I'm not going to lose that."

"Why didn't you bring the information about me? You aren't planning on using that are you?" Auggie said with a forced smile, "You know that would be a big mistake."

"No, I'm not going to use it against you. I have no reason to." David said, not liking Auggie's tone, "It's just that a lot of the information is overlapping. I'm going to have to spend a night cutting it into little pieces, but I have no need for what she has on you. I don't even think it's worth mentioning. Everyone knows you're a recovering alcoholic, so I don't really understand what some old bottle of bourbon is going to prove."

Auggie shrugged, "Oh it's not a big deal, she probably thought it had some meaning, but I'd still like to have it."

"I'll bring it by tonight and if you want the written document and I can bring that to."

"Sure, might as well have it all so we can put this behind us." Auggie said with a relieved smile, "Are you going to tell me what she has on you?"

"Who could have anything on me? I'm a saint." David said with a big grin as he walked away from Auggie.

**End of Chapter 4.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**.

**Lauren's Apartment**.

Violet opened her eyes, taking a few moments to remember where she was, smiling as she turned to see Lauren lying peacefully beside her. She slowly pulled the covers down over her shoulder, sliding them all way off her until she was able to see every inch of Lauren's delectable naked body.

She inched her way over until her body was rubbing up against Lauren's, leaning over and letting her fingers slide down over her thighs, caressing her firm round ass, which finally caused a reaction from her.

Lauren rolled over on her side, opened her eyes and saw Violet smiling back at her, which sent her screaming and flying off the bed in a millisecond.

"That's really good for my self confidence. Could you be more repulsed?"

Still catching her breath from her frantic escape, Lauren quickly began remembering the night before and just as quickly put a big happy smile on her face, "I was just kidding. Last night was great."

"Really?" Violet asked excitedly.

"Um, sure, it was different and I didn't get paid so that's a step up from the night before. Anyway, I really need get in the shower and get moving. I have a shift to get to."

"Can't you just stay here with me a little while longer?"

"I wish I could, but I have a couple very ill patients and if I don't get there and give them their meds they could die and I don't think you want that on your conscience." Lauren smiled and rushed into the bathroom, then rushed back out and grabbed her purse from the dresser and once again rushed back to the bathroom and quickly called Riley.

"Hello?"

"Riley, I need you to get over here right now. I have a very bizarre situation to deal with and I have no idea what to do."

"What now? Did you sleep with someone else for cash?" Riley asked with a smile.

"That's not funny at all and no there was no cash involved this time, just bad judgment, but Violet is still here."

"Violet? Wait a minute, did you sleep with her last night?"

"Yes, that's why I have a problem. I don't know how to deal with her. She is a very peculiar girl."

Riley nodded, "Maybe, but, she's sweet right. She seems nice enough to me."

"Well then you get over here and sleep with her."

"Very funny, but I can't. In 10 minutes I'll be back in class, so you're on your own. You could try Ella, she's an expert at dealing with the morning after. Of course she usually just leaves, but since you can't do that, she might have some other tricks to use."

"Since you weren't any help, I guess I have no choice."

"Always glad to help." Riley said with a cute smirk, "Are we still on for tonight?"

Lauren smiled, "Yes, if I can find a way to deal with Violet without hurting her feelings."

"I'll call you when I get off work." Riley said and then went back to grading the papers in front of her.

Lauren dialed the next number on her list and waited.

Ella picked up her phone, "Lauren, I was just about to call you."

"Before we get into that bad situation, I need help in dealing with Violet. She's still in my bed and she's acting like we're a couple already and we're not a couple already and I don't see that happening in any future I live in, so what I do?"

"You really should give the girl a chance."

"Ella, advice please!" Lauren said, not happy with Ella's first offering.

"Okay, but you have to remember this isn't some one night stand with a girl you'll never see again, so you need a little tact and that's really not my strong suit."

"Strike one."

"You really are bitchy when you're paranoid." Ella said with a smile, "Let me see, I hate to state the obvious but in this situation you might try the truth. Tell her you had fun, tell her she was amazing but you aren't really looking for a relationship right now, with your demanding hospital schedule and your desire to become a doctor being your number priority."

Lauren paused, smiled and nodded, "That's not bad. Why didn't I think of that? I like the truth."

"It's not easy to think when you're under pressure. Now, back to your other problem, your video career."

"Ella, not funny again." Lauren said, trying not to smile, "Did you find out anything?"

"A little." Ella said as she reached out and grabbed the folder on her desk, "I told you I had some people looking into this and they've tracked down what they believe is the general vicinity of where these emails originated. I say that because in reality it's next to impossible to track such things without having an actual search warrant to get internet provider information, but having said that they still believe it was sent from right here in LA. Now that may not seem like much, but they think they can narrow it down even further in a day or two. It's a very slow, tedious process. Anyway, I was looking up the names on that list you gave me and there are three people on both Jane and your lists, not including Sydney. Michael Mancini, which surprised the hell out of me, Amanda Woodward and Samantha Reilly, all three who used to live in our very building over 10 years ago. So, did you want to explain this now or downtown at the police station?"

"Would you stop doing that." Lauren said with a cute smile, "It's not what you think. Michael is a doctor, he's given lectures that I've attended. He's been nice to me and no I haven't slept with him. Samantha Reilly is my older sister and Amanda is someone she knows very well."

"Do they have any reason to blackmail you?"

"No of course not. Samantha lives in here in LA. I see her now and then but she's got a new life and we really don't get along very well. I only know Amanda because she always seemed to be with my sister. Michael has no reason to. I don't think this is about me."

"I'm going to talk to them or get PI to do it, but why haven't we met Samantha?" Ella asked, more than curious about this new development.

"She's a lot older than me. We have the same mother, different father. I was born when she was 12 and by the time she was 18 and out of the house I was still a kid. We just never had much of a chance to bond. She was good to me from what I remember. She's always got me the best gifts on my birthday, but we had a bit of falling out about 5 years ago and we just don't talk now."

"Well, I really think you should patch things up with her. She is family."

"Ella, you don't know everything that went on between us." Lauren snapped, not even trying to be subtle about her anger, "Is there anything else you want to tell me about this?"

"Only one other thing came up when they ran your name through the database, which after what you told me about your sister is beginning to make sense. Your name's really not Lauren Yung."

"I didn't ask for help so you could snoop into my past and I really don't need your help anymore." Lauren said angrily, putting her phone down and wishing she'd just stayed in bed.

"Lauren. Lauren." Ella said before slamming her phone down on her desk.

"I'm sure glad I'm not that phone." David grinned as she walked toward Ella, "I wanted to apologize about last night. I shouldn't have grilled you like that."

"It's fine. The truth always seems to come out doesn't it? What I did to Jonah was wrong, but the rest is irrelevant as far as I'm concerned."

"I know that my past isn't exactly squeaky clean so I have no right to judge you. I hope we can move past this. I'm giving you the information I have about your dealings with Sydney, Michael and Jonah. I don't want it. I wish I'd never found it." David said and then sat a small box on Ella's desk

Ella stood up and had a look inside, "Thanks, but I'm going to have to deal with Jonah about more than just this."

"What do you mean?"

"I guess you're find out sooner or later." Ella sighed and sat back down, "Well, Riley and I are kind of together."

"No you're not." David laughed, "You're with a different girl every night."

"If you stop and think you'll know that's not quite true lately. How many times have I turned you down for another drink or a night on the town? That's because I was going to see Riley."

"I don't get it." David said, more than a little confused, "She's with Jonah. I thought they were getting married?"

"I know and that's why this sucks so much. I ruined a perfect couple, I hurt my best friend and now I have to tell him that in addition to that I also stole money from him. Yep, my karma is going to hell in a hurry."

"Even you can't be that good. You can't just change Riley into a lesbian. I mean, that's not possible, is it?" David wondered, not sure what to make of Ella's news, "I know you're hot, but this isn't fair. I always thought I had a chance with Riley, but she shot me down so many times I gave up, but that's because I thought she was in love with Jonah."

"She was." Ella nodded, "But, people can fall out of love and fall into love with other people. It happens all the time. Stop obsessing over this. I feel bad enough I don't need you upset with me over this to."

"I'm not upset, I'm confused." David said, his expression mimicking his words, "I guess I should be saying congratulations. I don't mean to be a downer here. If you're happy with her then I'm happy for you."

"Thanks, but I don't feel very happy right now. Too much is happening that I don't like and most of it's my fault."

"Can I help?"

"It's sweet of you to offer, but I think I have to deal with this on my own." Ella said, glancing at her computer screen for a moment before looking back up at David, "Oh, actually there is one thing you could do for me, I have some PI's working on this very private matter, but I found out something today that I need someone to look into. I need you to promise not to talk about this with anyone, not even Auggie, not Jonah, nobody."

"Sounds serious. What's the deal?"

"This is probably more bad judgment on my part, but this has to do with Lauren, so I really need you to be discrete." Ella said, emphasizing the discreet part as best she could, "Has Lauren ever mentioned a sister to you?"

David shrugged, "No, I don't think she's mentioned her family at all, why?"

"She has one and it's a long story but I found something about her sister that's a bit disturbing if it's true, but I'm hoping it's not true. I want you to prove it's not true. I don't want to have to tell Lauren something this bad."

"What kind of bad?"

"One of my sources thinks that her sister Samantha and her alleged girlfriend Amanda Woodward may have killed someone."

"Really? I didn't think women killed people, do they?"

"Yes, of course. Maybe not as much as men, but I think everyone is capable of killing someone in the right circumstances." Ella explained calmly, "The details of this murder are sketchy, that's why I need you to look into it, but if they have killed someone I don't you want you putting yourself in danger. I can't deal with losing someone else."

"Give me some credit. I can be subtle." David said with a smirk.

Ella smacked him on the arm, "This isn't funny David, I'm serious."

"Chill Ella, I was kidding." David said, smiling as he stepped out of her reach, "I kind of like that you're worried about me, but I'm not going to get myself killed. I'm not stupid."

"I know, I'm just a little on edge." Ella reached for a pen and piece of paper, "I'm going to give you the address to Amanda's place. Samantha has no formal address but she appears to live with Amanda, so you can do the math there. If they are together then you'll need to divide and conquer, don't talk to them together or they'll never slip up."

"You really think Lauren's sister is capable of murder?"

"I don't know her sister, so yes I think it's possible." Ella replied, "Someone did die and those two women were at the scene of the crime. The man who died was an investment banker who just happen to turn them down for a loan earlier in the day. They have a gun registered to them that's the same make that was used in the murder, a .22 caliber handgun. Lastly, right after this man died they received the loan they that he had turned down."

"One very obvious question, why aren't they in jail?"

"Same reason you're not, they know people in high places." Ella said with a smile, "I guess they could never prove their gun was used in the shooting and allegedly the man was shot in broad daylight and the two women claim they saw him fall to the ground but they didn't shoot him."

" Maybe they didn't."

"Well find out for me," Ella said with a sigh, then grabbed David's arm as he began to walk away, "but don't get yourself killed. Thanks."

David smiled and gave Ella a hug, "I'll do what I can."

Jonah walked in as David walked out and David stopped and mouthed the words, 'good luck' as he disappeared out of sight. Jonah closed the door, put down his camera and stood in front of Ella, "Well, here we are. I guess we need to talk."

"Yes we do." Ella said, not sure whether to sit or stand or jump out the window finally sitting back down in her chair.

Jonah settled into his chair, fiddled with some papers on Ella's desk before lifting his head up, "So, you stole my girlfriend, that's pretty low. In fact I can't think of anything much worse. Can you?"

"No, it was wrong." Ella cringed and stood up, "There's nothing I can say that can make this better. You don't want to hear why things happened or that I love her or anything like that. You're my best friend and I did what best friends should never do. I'm accepting blame for all of this. I hate to say this because you probably don't want to hear it, but honest to god I never planned for this to happen. I never even looked at Riley like that before. You know that. I didn't like her. I felt you were too good for her, so it wasn't something I set out to do."

"Is that supposed to comfort me? Because it doesn't." Jonah snapped, more than ready to go on the offensive. "Riley's gone. I spent 5 years with her. 5 years. Does that even register? Now it's like I wasted all that time. I know maybe I shouldn't think like that, but it's really hard not to. How long did it take you two to fall in love? Didn't you just tell me you didn't believe in monogamy? You lied right to my face didn't you?"

"It doesn't matter. I don't know what you want right now. If you want to scream and yell then go for it. I'm not going to defend myself. I was wrong and I'm sorry you got hurt. More sorry then you'll ever believe. I don't want us to end, but I know I have no control over that. Why are you here?"

"I wanted to talk you this morning but Riley asked me to cool down a bit and I have, but it doesn't change anything. I lost my girlfriend, my fiancé of about 24 hours and I lost my best friend and I never saw it coming." Jonah said with a disturbing calmness in his voice, "You're good Ella, all those times you were around Riley lately and you sure put on a show, always acting like you didn't like her, but you'd put up with her for me. How ironic is that. So how is the sex with her?"

Ella quickly turned and walked away from Jonah, "Stop that. I'm not going there."

"Oh, but you sure didn't mind going there when I wasn't around. How many times did you have sex with her while she was with me?"

"Please don't do this."

Jonah waited for Ella to face him, before glaring back at her, "Why, you said I have a right to be mad, so I'm mad. I don't get mad much, it's a strange feeling. Almost helpless. So if I ask some tough questions you'll have to bear with me."

"I think maybe you should leave. I'm not going to fight with you."

"What fight, you won in a knockout." Jonah asked sarcastically, "Some might call it a sucker punch, but why quibble over details. What should I do with my life now? Any thoughts?"

"I want you to become the filmmaker I know you can be. I want you to find a way to get past this and in time I hope you can forgive me for this."

"Those seem like pretty reasonable requests. Do you have any experience in dealing with breakups? Have you ever been dumped in your life? Have you ever lost the love of your life to your best friend?"

"Yes, I have been dumped before." Ella replied quickly, "Maybe not for a while, but I had some bad experiences before we met. I had my heart broken, so I know what it feels like."

Jonah laughed, "You think some breakup when you were 16 is the same as losing the love of your life, the woman you were going to marry? Don't kid yourself; you've always had it all. Never once did I mind. I loved being around you. All my friends envied me. I had Riley as my girlfriend and you as my best friend. I was surrounded by beauty and maybe my luck just ran out."

"You're going to have to decide what you want from me, but until then I really do have work to do."

"Well, I wouldn't want to disturb you, so I'll leave. Goodbye Ella."

Ella watched in silence as Jonah grabbed his things and walked out of her office, perhaps for the very last time.

**End of Chapter 5**.

**Notes**: In case some people aren't familiar with the original Melrose series, the character Amanda Woodward was portrayed by Heather Locklear, while Samantha Reilly was portrayed by Brooke Langton.

**As always, feedback and comments are welcome and appreciated**.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**.

**Lauren's Apartment**.

Lauren stepped out of the shower, feeling clean and refreshed, but still with a major problem on her hands. After slipping a towel over her naked body, she opened the bathroom door, peaked her head out and looked around her bedroom. A sense of relief came over her when she noticed Violet had left the room and quickly took that time to get dressed.

Not sure what to expect once she walked out of her bedroom, Lauren felt ready to handle any situation that arose. Sure enough she found Violet sitting at the kitchen table reading the morning paper. She smiled, walked towards her and sat down beside her, "Good morning."

"Good morning." Violet said in a slightly less cheery way than Lauren had come to expect.

"Did you sleep well?"

Violet shook her head, "Not really. I probably should've have stayed in bed."

"Why?"

"Well, I get the feeling that I make you uncomfortable."

"No, it's not that." Lauren explained, "It's just that I'm not really sure what to say right now. I don't know what you're feeling right now."

"I was feeling pretty good, but you kind of ran away from me this morning so I'm starting to rethink things." Violet said, trying not to revisit Lauren's scream or the look on her face when she jumped away from her.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that, but I admit I freaked out when I saw you. Maybe you should tell me what you want to happen now?"

"I don't know. I enjoyed last night. I had no idea it would be so amazing." Violet said, her smile slowly coming back to her face. "You were amazing. I haven't felt like that ever and I guess I was ready to keep it going this morning."

"Yes and I'm not sure that's a good idea."

Violet nodded and got up from the table, "Oh I got that, but I'm really hoping it's not because I wasn't any good last night."

"No, not at all." Lauren said honestly, "The sex was great. You were great. I loved everything we did last night, but I'm just not ready for anything more. I have too many things going right now."

"Okay, I understand that. I don't think I'm ready for more either." Violet said, proving she did grasp certain things, "But when I saw you lying there I couldn't help myself. You looked so beautiful and I just wanted to kiss you all over. I guess that was wrong."

Lauren smiled, "No, it wasn't wrong, but I was just caught off guard. I like you and I hope we can stay friends. This doesn't have to change anything between us."

"I don't know how you do it." Violet said as she looked Lauren over with a sexy glint in her eye, "When I look at you I can't help think about last night and maybe I'm oversexed, but I just want to keep going where we left off last night. I think I should go before say something really dumb."

Lauren stepped in front Violet, blocking her way, "You don't have to go. Just stay and have some breakfast with me. Is there anything interesting in the paper?"

Violet smiled, sat back down and flipped back to the front page, "Well, let's see, there was another murder in the city last night, city council wants a raise, the Dodgers won and it's going to be sunny and warm again today."

"Sounds about right." Lauren said with a smile, "Well, with nothing new in the city, we could talk about you for a while. I don't know a whole lot about you."

"There's not much to tell." Violet said with a smile but quickly got up and walked away, "I've lived a very boring life and now I'm here and aside from seeing a dead body, the only other thing that's happened to me that stands out is that woman making me the offer to work with her."

"Are you still thinking about that?"

"Yes, because right now I'm nobody. I can walk into a room and be invisible, but she made me feel special, like I was beautiful and that people would want to be with me. That might not mean anything to you, but I really like the idea of being wanted."

"You don't need some pimp woman to make you feel special. You are special." Lauren said, wishing she could get through to Violet, "You're still so young, you need to get out there and find out what you want to do with your life. Meet some new people, but you don't need to sell your body, because in reality those people don't want you, they want anyone who will make them feel special. They won't want to know about you, not you as a person, they just want you to make them feel better for that moment, so they can forget about their miserable lives, so none of this will be about you"

"I guess I don't see it that way." Violet cheerfully disagreed, "Anyway, I should get going, I have some phone calls I have to make."

"Okay, I didn't mean to chase you away with my speeches, but I care about you and I don't want you doing something you'll regret, like I did."

"It's not the same situation. Thank you for everything. I'll see you around." Violet said with a weak smile as she hurried out the door. Once outside, she pulled out her cell phone, found Wendi's card and made the call.

Wendi smiled at the two well dressed men she was talking to and excused herself to answer her phone, "Hello?"

"Hi Wendi, it's Violet. We met the other night."

"Yes, I'm glad you called. Have you made a decision?"

"Yes, I want to work for you."

A huge satisfied smile covered Wendi's gorgeous face, "Well that's what I like to hear. Okay, I need you to fill out all the paperwork and then we can work out a schedule that you're happy with." With her assistant waving at her frantically, Wendi nodded and began walking towards her, "I have to go now, but please come by the office tomorrow morning and we'll get started. Welcome aboard Violet."

"Thank you. I'll be there tomorrow morning." Violet slid her cell phone back into her purse and walked towards her apartment.

** Ella's Office**.

Ella sat in her chair, her trademark smile noticeably absent from her pretty face as she looked at pictures of Riley&Jonah on her computer, remembering back to when things were so much easier.

Her speakerphone began to buzz and she leaned over and pushed a button down, "What is it?"

"There's a woman here that wants to talk to you. She says you won't recognize her name, but you'll remember her from the kiss you shared in her car the other night."

"Shit." Ella yelled, getting to her feet, shaking her head at the way her day was going, "Tell her I'm busy."

"I did, she says you'll want to talk to her. She won't say why."

"Send her in then. I'll take care of it."

A beautiful woman walked into her office, continued moving forward until she was standing right in front of Ella, "You look good enough to eat."

"Well, you better lose the appetite because there will be no eating happening here today."

"You look tense, I bet a nice massage would relax you." The woman said with a sexy smile, walking up and trying to slide in behind Ella, "Why don't you take off that dress and I'll show you how my fingers got to be so nimble."

Ella slid out of the way, folding her arms in front of her chest, "No thanks. Why are you here?"

The woman frowned, "Why the attitude change? I thought we were going to pick up where we left off the other night?"

"I know what I said, but the truth is I left because I'm seeing someone right now. I should never have been in the car with you. But, that's over. If that's what you came for then I'm sorry to disappoint."

"No, that would've made all this much more fun, but I'm here for something else unfortunately. In case you haven't guessed by now it wasn't an accident that I was in the bar the other night. It was good luck that you happened be into me, but I'm here to deliver a message to you."

"What are you talking about? What message?" Ella asked as she began to feel uncomfortable.

"The other night I was hired with a number of other beautiful girls, all scattered throughout your favorite watering hole. It was assumed that you'd pick up one of us and take us home and have sex. Since that didn't happen the person who hired me wasn't very happy."

"You've lost me and I really don't have time for this. Whatever game you're playing you can take somewhere else."

"I wish I could do that, but I'm in this too deep now. I took money from these people, well this man anyway. Just let me do this." The woman said, beginning to act more than a little nervous as she reached in her purse and pulled out a piece of paper, "Okay, this is the message, someone who is very influential wants you to resign from your job here and then leave Los Angeles."

Ella laughed, "Are you for real? Who sent you here?"

"I don't know. Why don't you ask him."

"I'd love to, where is he?"

"He's at this address." The woman handed Ella a piece of paper, "He wants you to know who he is."

Ella looked at the named on the card and shook her head, "I don't know anyone named Arlen Forester, so what's this about?"

"I asked that question when I was approached by him and he said he was going to ruin you and make you regret screwing around with other people's wives."

"Oh, an angry husband, that's nice." Ella said with an awkward smile, "I don't think I've been with many married women, at least that told me they were married. Well, I guess I should go talk to him and tell him to go to hell in person."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The woman said, reaching out and putting her hand on Ella's arm, "He seems to have a nasty temper. He hit one of the girls that gave him a smart ass answer. I wanted to leave when that happened but I was afraid. Look, I just want to deliver this message and get the hell out of LA."

Ella hung her head as she stared at the pretty woman, "This is a bit embarrassing but I don't even know your name."

"I didn't give my name to him either, I don't want him knowing."

"Okay, but if you need any help at all please call me. I don't like what you did, but I don't blame you for this, I blame myself."

"Okay, thank you. Oh, my name's Lisa and I really did enjoy kissing you, so if things don't work out with your girlfriend give me a call." She wrote her number on a small piece of paper and slid it into Ella's hand.

Ella smiled and led Lisa to the door, "Goodbye Lisa." After watching Ella get on the elevator, she grabbed her purse, took another look at Arlen's address and headed out the door.

**Melrose Place complex**.

Jonah lugged his camera and assorted paraphernalia into the complex, stopping as he spotted Violet lying out by the pool in a very tiny white bikini. He walked towards her, enjoyed the view and then continued walking.

Violet sat up from her chair, "Hey, you don't have to run off."

Turning slowly around, Jonah sat down his equipment and smiled at Violet, "It's not that. I've just had a very long day and I think I'm just going crash early."

"You look sad more than tired. Is something wrong?"

"Yes, a lot of things are wrong, but life goes on or so I keep telling myself."

"Is this about Riley?" Violet asked, never afraid to be blunt.

"Mostly yes, did she tell you about us?" Jonah asked, wondering just who else knew about his love life falling apart.

"No, but I could tell she was pretty sad to."

Jonah let out a deep sigh, "I guess you're going to find out sooner or later, but we broke up. Well, that's not really the right word, she's leaving me for Ella."

"What?" Violet asked. Getting to her feet and walking right over and giving Jonah a consoling hug, "I'm so sorry. That's horrible."

"It's pretty bad." Jonah let go of Violet but she continued to hug him, "Well, I really should get going."

"You know I should've put two and two together." Violet said, turning away briefly, "I saw them kissing one time, but I told myself it was just a friendly kiss, but then I saw them kissing again and I know I should've said something to you, but I didn't want to get involved and I really hoped you could work things out."

"When did you see them kissing?"

"The first time was about just after I moved in. I remember it because you and David went to Vegas for the weekend and Riley couldn't go because she had to do something for school. Anyway, I went over to see how Riley was doing and I saw them kissing inside."

"I wish I could say I was surprised, but after talking to Riley and Ella, I'm not." Jonah said, past the point of being surprised by anything.

Violet put her hand on Jonah's shoulder, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be adding to your troubles. I know Riley loved you."

"Maybe, but not enough."

"I know you probably want to be alone, but it might help if you had someone to talk to. I'm a good listener. Maybe we could go out to dinner?"

"I don't know. I don't think I'd be very good company." Jonah said, finding it hard to concentrate with Violet draped all over him in her tiny bikini.

"Come on, you don't want to sit in there all alone, that's just going to be depressing. I'll call Auggie and have him make your favorite meal." Violet asked with a playful smile as she leaned in even closer, her breasts pushing up against Jonah's chest.

Jonah looked down at Violet's impressive cleavage and smiled, "You sure are persistent, but maybe you're right, I do need to get out of this place and get my mind off things. Okay, you're on. Let me get cleaned up and I'll call you in an hour or so."

"Great, I'll go call Auggie." Violet said with an excited smile as she walked slowly past Jonah, enjoying his eyes following her every step.

Jonah picked up his stuff and walked over to his apartment, happier than he was 5 minutes ago.

**End of Chapter 6**.

As always feedback is welcome and appreciated.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7.**

**Forester Holdings**.

Ella walked into the lavishly furnished reception area, walked up and smiled at the woman behind the desk, "Hi, I'm here to see Arlen Forester."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"No, but he'll see me anyway. Tell him Ella Simms is here."

"One moment please." The woman said, picking up another phone, "Mr. Forester, there is a woman out here who claims you'll want to talk to her. Her name is Ella Simms."

"Ah yes, send her right in."

"Yes sir." The woman put the phone down, got up and opened the door for Ella, "He'll see you now Miss Simms."

"Thank you." Ella said, happily walking into the large office. She spotted a middle aged man sitting at the desk and walked right up to him, "You have a problem with me?"

"Indirectly yes." Arlen said as he smoked on his Altadis Behike cigar, "You have upset someone very powerful and as you might guess they have taken exception to it. Your punishment is rather minimal considering your offense."

"Quitting my job and leaving LA is minimal for what crime exactly?"

"I'm not sure what they call it." Arlen asked, perplexed by the question, "Sleeping with someone's wife is your crime. That's frowned upon anywhere you choose to look. The husband believes you need to be taught a lesson. If you refuse to do as you are asked the consequences will be much more severe."

"Is that a threat?"

Arlen smiled and blew smoke towards Ella, "I'd call it a vision of your future."

Ella reached in, grabbed his cigar and stomped it out in his ashtray, "Do I get to know the name of this mystery man that's so upset with me? How do I know I actually slept with his wife? Where's the proof?"

"We have visual proof Miss Simms, there is no doubt it is you. No doubt. I personally watched the tape numerous times just to be sure."

"I bet you did." Ella laughed and then turned and began walking out of the office.

Arlen got to his feet, "Leaving is not going to change anything. If you do not resign and leave LA within a week there will be consequences that you can't even imagine."

Ella stopped at the doorway and smiled at Arlen, "Then bring em on, because I'm not leaving." As soon as she got into the elevator she pulled out her cell phone and called Eddie. She waited for him to answer but had to deal with voicemail instead, "Eddie, I need you to do a background check on Arlen Forester of Forester Holdings. Try and find a connection between him, Jane and Lauren and get back to me as soon as you can. Thanks."

Arlen picked up his phone and placed a call and sat back in his chair as he waited for his boss to pick up.

"Do you have news for me?"

"Yes Simon, I don't think Ella Simms is going to scare as easily as the others."

"That's fine. Let her sweat it out for a week and then I'll decide what to do with her." Simon said from his office in Berlin, "What about the other women?"

"Lauren Yung contacted Ella, so they are pretty much working together at this point. Your wife also contacted Ella. The two other women on the list haven't contacted anyone. I'm guessing they are waiting further instructions."

"I was really hoping Jane wouldn't do that." Simon said with a disappointed sigh, "I thought she'd contact the PI I told her about. Have they made any progress in their investigation?"

"As I pointed out earlier, it probably wasn't wise to tip them off like this. It's not going to take long to connect me to you."

Simon smiled, "I don't mind if they do. I'm going back to LA anyway in a few days so I'd like this to be wrapped up by then."

"When you first contacted me about this you were furious. May I ask what changed?" Arlen asked, holding in his frustration as best he could.

Simon paused before answering as a pretty young blonde woman walked into the room, "Jane's sister was killed and I don't think this is the right time for revenge."

"You do realize that Jane is going to find out you set all this up."

"I hope she does. Then I'll know if we have a marriage left to save or not." Simon said as he grabbed the pretty young woman's hand and pulled her onto his lap.

"Okay sir, what should I do with all the evidence you provided me?"

"I want it destroyed and that means everything Arlen. If I find out you kept any of those tapes it will be the last thing you do."

"I wouldn't dream of it sir." Arlen said, cringing at the thought of losing those tapes from his hard drive.

"Good, then that's all for now." Simon said, hanging up the phone, taking the young woman's hand and walking out of his office.

**Amanda Woodward's Home**.

David pulled up to the sprawling estate, looked around for a way inside, finally spotting a large gate on the north side. He drove up and stopped beside a speakerphone on the outside of the gate. He leaned out and pushed the button on it.

"How may I help you?" said the male voice coming from the speaker.

"I'm here to speak to Amanda Woodward and Samantha Reilly about a murder."

"If this is the police please identify yourself and flash your badge for the camera above the speakerphone."

"No, I' not the police. I'm looking into this case for a client of mine. I just have a couple questions. I'm actually trying to prove that they are innocent, so if I could talk to them that would sure help."

After a few minutes of silence, the gate opened and David smiled and drove up the long driveway, parking outside the beautiful mansion. He got out of the car and walked towards the front door. An elderly man opened the door and waved him inside.

Amanda Woodward stepped into the hallway and motioned David to follow her. He followed her into another large oval room where she took a seat on a long narrow bench. David sat down beside her and pulled out a notepad in hopes of looking somewhat official, "Thank you for agreeing to talk to me Miss Woodward."

"Call me Amanda." She said with a stunning smile.

"Okay Amanda, I stopped by the police station before I came here and I talked to the detectives in charge of the case and even though no charges have been laid they were very quick to inform me that there is no statute of limitation on murder, so until this case is solved you will forever be the prime suspects."

"Yes and your point is?" Amanda asked bluntly.

"I'm hoping to clear your name, both you and Samantha to be exact. Do you have any idea who could've killed this man?"

"No, none at all." Amanda replied, "We didn't go to the bank to seek out a loan because we were broke, as you can see that is not the case. The loan was a business maneuver only. The man, his name was Roland Curfeld, had issues with us and chose to refuse us based on his own prejudices and not on any of the merits needed to qualify for the loan, which I of course met."

"What issues?"

"It's hard to believe in this day and age but he did not believe that two women should be together and once he found out we were a couple, his whole attitude changed."

"Okay, but weren't there recourses available for this type of discrimination?"

"Yes, I wasn't worried at all about securing the loan, but I admit I was very angry at the way he treated us. We did confront of him about this when he went for lunch. I was trying to remain calm but I have a bit of temper and I fully admit that I became very angry and my voice was raised and I was yelling and I'm sure it didn't look good to anyone who might've been watching, but I did not kill him."

"Do you know if the police investigated Mr. Curfeld?"

Amanda nodded, "They said they did and they also said they didn't come up with any motive for him to be shot."

"You've admitted to having a .22 caliber handgun in your possession?"

"Yes and it's never been fired. The forensics experts proved that."

David jotted down everything Amanda said before continuing, "You're a wealthy woman so did you conduct your own investigation into Mr. Curfeld?"

"No, I saw no reason to. I know we are innocent and the police have no real evidence against us, so as far as I'm concerned the matter is closed."

"That's good, but in order to get real closure it might be best to find out who did kill Curfeld. What I'd like from you is any information you can give me about this man. I found out through my sources that you had 3 meetings with Mr. Curfeld at the bank. Did he seem calm, agitated, did anything stand out about his behavior?"

"Not really. I found him to be quite pleasant to begin with."

"Did you talk to anyone else about the way he treated you and Samantha?"

"Actually yes, I told a few friends and associates of mine."

"Would it be possible to get a list of their names?"

Samantha Reilly walked into the room and walked up and kissed Amanda softly on the lips and then stood behind her, "What's going on here?"

Amanda looked up at the tall brunette, "He's just asking questions about the murder."

"Haven't we answered enough of your questions? When are you going to leave us alone."

"Samantha, it's not the police. He's here to help."

"Help? Why?" Samantha asked, not nearly as pleased to be talking to a stranger as Amanda was.

"I'm not sure why, I never asked." Amanda said with a slightly embarrassed smile.

Samantha shook her head and smiled, "Well, then I will ask. Why are you here?"

"I can't really say." David said with a shrug, "Someone wants to prove you are innocent, that should be enough."

"It's not." Samantha said, folding her arms in front of her and glaring back at David, "In fact it seems rather suspicious to me."

David smiled when he realized Samantha wasn't about to continue without an explanation, "Okay look, your sister is in a bit of trouble and a friend of mine is trying to help her out. While helping her she came across this murder accusation and she wanted to hopefully prove that her sister wasn't a killer. She didn't want to have to tell Lauren the bad news."

Samantha laughed, "Lauren would be happy if I went to jail. She's just like that Curfeld man."

"Maybe she was but something tells me that's changed a bit now." David said with a slight smirk.

His smirk was not lost on Samantha, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm really not supposed to be talking about that. I just want to do my job and prove you're innocent."

"How do you know Lauren?" Samantha asked, not letting David rest for a moment.

"We live in the same apartment complex." David said, feeling like the witness instead of investigator all of a sudden.

"So Lauren doesn't know you're doing this?"

"No."

"Well I don't know what to say." Samantha said with a sigh, pacing back and forth in front of Amanda and David, "I'm not sure I want to ease your friends mind when I don't believe my sister would care. When this first happened she was contacted by the police. She knows I was accused of murder and she didn't even call me. Whatever change you were talking about, I haven't seen it."

"Okay, I hope you and your sister can work things out. Anyway, if you remember anything at all please call me or this number here. This is my friend Ella's number." David handed both women Ella's business card and showed himself out.

**Auggie's Restaurant**.

Lauren and Riley waved at Auggie as they were being shown to their table, both girls surprised to see Violet draped all over him. After exchanging smiles they took their seats.

"She sure moves on fast." Lauren said, still staring at Violet.

"Moves on?" Riley asked.

"Oh right, I guess I should fill you in on what happened last night?" Lauren said with a guilty smile.

"Yes I guess you should." Riley ordered with an equally curious smile.

"I did something very impulsive last night. I slept with Violet."

Riley's eyes popped out of her head, "You what?"

"You heard right." Lauren said with a cute smile, "It's a long story."

"I bet it is, but I still want to hear it. Violet huh? I'm still trying to get a read on her. So how was it?"

"Surprisingly good." Lauren smiled, instantly remembering Violet's tender tough, "I say surprising because she told me that she'd never been with another woman before, but I never would've guessed because she was really amazing."

"Well, I don't know what to say." Riley said, looking over at Violet making goo goo eyes at Auggie, "I guess I could ask why she's hanging all over Auggie now though? Was this just a one night thing?"

"Yeah, I thought she wanted more this morning, but she sure doesn't seem to be thinking of me right now."

Riley took a look at Lauren face and decided it was a perfect segue to her own news, "Maybe this is a good time to tell you news that I should've told you before. Jonah and I are breaking up."

Lauren's eyes popped out of her head as she gasped at Riley, "What? Why?"

"Ella is why."

"She's with Jonah now?"

Riley smiled, "No, but that's an understandable reaction. Actually I'm with Ella."

"OMFG." Lauren screamed, before remembering where she was. Smiling at everyone staring at her, she lowered her eyes and shook her head at Riley. "How the hell can this happen and I not see it? Poor Jonah though. This has to be killing him."

Jonah walked past Lauren and Riley's table, walked around and into the kitchen grabbed Violet around the waist, pulled her in and gave her a big wet kiss. After looking straight at Riley, he took Violet's hand and led her to his table.

Riley glared at Jonah and Violet, not sure who she was more angry with, finally getting to her feet, "I can't believe he did that. I can't believe she is with him already. What a slut. We just broke up and now he's out with that bitch."

"Sit down." Lauren said, walking over and pushing down on her shoulders, "You're playing right into his hands. More to the point, why are you acting like this anyway, you left him right?"

"So, if he dumped me I wouldn't go sleep with the first person I saw. I have a bit more class than that."

"Well you did cheat on him."

"That's not the same thing." Riley snapped, still glaring at Violet, "Why do guys move on so fast? It's like he's not even upset anymore."

Lauren smiled and put her hand on Riley's arm, "He's hurting. He's just being a guy. He's trying to act like it's not big deal, but it is. I'm not sure what Violet has to do with all this."

"She's just your typical opportunistic little tramp. I never liked her anyway."

"I thought you did like her?" Lauren asked, then quickly changed the subject as Riley glared at her, "Maybe we should go somewhere else?"

"No way in hell." Riley said loudly, still staring at Jonah and Violet, "I wish Ella were here. I'd make out with her right here on this table, hell I'd have sex with her on his table if I could. Then we'd see how calm he was."

"Let's not get crazy here. I don't think Auggie would appreciate a live sex show." Lauren paused and then began to smile, "Okay, maybe he would, but there won't be any sex on tables tonight."

"And you slept with her? Wow, that's so disappointing." Riley said,

Lauren grinned at Riley's disappointing frown, "Come on, just the other day you were pretty darn curious about her."

"Well, first she's all over Auggie, then she sleeps with you and now she's with Jonah, is that not the definition of slut?" Riley growled, "I wonder if I can get her evicted."

"Now you're starting to sound like a jealous girlfriend. Are you sure you're over Jonah?"

"Yes, but I'll always care about him and I just don't like her. That's all." Riley stated loudly, "I'm in love with Ella, that's where my heart is now, but I still don't want some skank taking advantage of Jonah when he's so vulnerable."

"This was just for affect." Lauren said, doing her best to calm Riley down, "Relax, I really don't think they are going to hook up. Jonah is upset and lonely and she was there. Let's just ignore them for now. Please?"

"Okay." Riley said as she spotted Auggie behind in the back, "I'll be right back, I need to talk to Auggie."

"Don't start anything. He might actually like her."

"No, this isn't about that witch." Riley said, smiling as Lauren gave her the evil eye, "I promise, it's about Sydney." After getting Lauren's nod of approval, Riley rushed past Jonah and Violet and slipped into the kitchen.

"You know you aren't supposed to be back here." Auggie said, barely looking up from preparing numerous meals at once.

"I know, but I need to talk to you and everything's been happening so fast I haven't had a chance."

"What about?"

"I saw you talking to Sydney the night she was killed. I know you didn't do it, but you two were yelling at each other. Was it about me? I know she saw us talking a couple nights before she was killed and she got the wrong impression and I'm just wondering…"

"No, it wasn't about you." Auggie said, happy to reassure Riley, "Sydney had a temper and so did I and sometimes simple normal conversations would turn into a war of words for no reason, that's all it was. I don't even remember what we were talking about."

"Okay, well that's good, I guess." Riley said, happily accepting Auggie's explanation, "So how are you doing? I haven't got a chance to talk to you about this. I know you cared about Sydney so this has to be really hard on you."

"It is, that's why I'm working double shifts right now. I'm not ready to deal with the reality that she's gone." Auggie said with a heavy sigh. He then pulled Riley off to the side, "Actually, on another note, I got an email about an hour ago from Sydney's lawyer saying there was going to be a reading of her will at his office tomorrow. Did you get one?"

Riley shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know, I haven't checked my computer all day. I don't know why I would get an invitation, I knew her, but not as well as you."

"You should check, just in case, she always liked you and Jonah."

"Okay, well I will, but first I will go back and finish my dinner with Lauren. I can't wait to taste what you've made tonight. Everything in here smells so good. How can you stand to be around it?"

Auggie smiled at the sight of Riley inhaling the dizzying array of aroma's the filled the room, "You get used to it. I'll have your feast ready in about 10 minutes."

"Thanks. I can't." Riley said as she slid back out of the kitchen.

**End of Chapter 7**.

Feedback is welcome and appreciated.


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